


Fear the Monster's Heart

by for_t2



Category: The Witcher (TV)
Genre: Angst, Denial, Enemies to Lovers, F/F, Grief/Mourning, Loss of Identity, Monsters, Not Canon Compliant, Revenge, Sad Ending
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-01-01
Updated: 2020-01-01
Packaged: 2021-02-27 06:27:30
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,471
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22072516
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/for_t2/pseuds/for_t2
Summary: Renfri had no reason to stay in Blåviken after she slaughtered Stregobor, but sometimes, even a monster can show mercy
Relationships: Renfri/Original Female Character
Comments: 4
Kudos: 25





	Fear the Monster's Heart

Monsters are made to be feared. 

Maybe not intentionally, maybe not all at once, but always, every monster ends up a legend, a reputation that strikes fear into the hearts of any who may cross their path. 

The town of Blåviken had feared Renfri the moment she had stepped foot onto its roads, the curse of the Black Sun her legend to bear. When, for the first few days, she did nothing, taking position in the tavern and enjoying the drink and food on offer, the fear almost faded into a simple wary hostility.  
But when she confirmed she had him, the sorcerer trapped in the tower by his own fear, by the legend of his own creation, the fear crept back into the open. And when she began slaughtering every single person in town, the fear screamed through burning air. 

There were some who tried to run, and some who tried stand, tried to fight back. Either way, no matter how hard they struggled, no matter how fast they ran, their fate ended in blood on her sword, blood drenching the cool mud between the houses and on the paths leading up to the tower. 

“What has he ever done for you?”

“You’re a monster!” The village guard, maybe a few months younger than Renfri, already exhausted from the battle, roared. Charged once more. 

Renfri had no trouble blocking her swing, knocking the sword of the guard’s hands and the guard to the dirt. “I know.” Standing over the guard, sword placed just under her chin, jugular veins pulsing just beyond the tip, Renfri smirked, loving the fear shining in the guard’s eyes.

“Go…” The guard managed to stammer, her voice a lot weaker a lot less defiant than she intended. “Go to hell.” 

Renfri’s smirk grew even wider, more manic, if that was possible. “Too late.” She raised her sword high into the air for the killing blow, and… and hesitated. 

Sometimes, even monsters have a choice. 

She slowly lowered the sword. “You can go.” The guard didn’t move. “I promise.” 

“There’s nowhere to go,” the guard replied, so quietly Renfri almost missed it. 

Sometimes, even monsters have to stop. Renfri crouched down next to the trembling guard. Brushed a streak of blood off her cheek and placed a small kiss on her forehead. “Then stay.” 

***** 

Every victory deserves a feast. 

Or, at least, this victory did. It wasn’t just a victory, it was the victory. The culmination of a years-long quest for revenge. For Renfri to serve Stregobor his due, to inflict what measure of pain she could on him for what he did to her. 

And now it was over. The sorcerer, left to rot impaled in front of his tower, the town burned to the ground, and in a way, Renfri felt like she could finally be free. And that, she felt, called for a feast, with whatever they could salvage from the remains, to count their earnings and to toast her freedom. 

“You should eat something.” 

The guard hadn’t said a word since the end of the battle. She had just forlornly followed Renfri around, purposelessly, flinching at every cracked twig and every bandit cheer. And now, sitting next to the sorcerer’s throne Renfri made her own, the guard just stared straight ahead, her armour still on, unwashed. 

“You should get your strength back.” The guard made no hint of having heard Renfri. So Renfri piled a plate full of the tastiest looking bits of meat and fruit she saw and held it out. “Really.”

She had to pick a slice of bread with her own hands and practically shove it into the guard’s mouth before the guard looked at something. At her. “You’re a monster.”

True, Renfri shrugged, but… “I’m not heartless.”

The guard looked at her with a mix of loathing, disgust, and maybe pity. But without fear. “You killed them.” 

“They made a—”

Renfri didn’t have the chance to finish her sentence before the guard grabbed a knife. “You killed them.” Before the guard lunged at her. “You killed them!” 

Somehow, in the mess of limbs and punches, neither guard nor Renfri wrestled the other down. Instead, it ended in tears, the guard curled up in Renfri’s arms. 

***** 

“What should I do next?”

The problem with revenge is that once you’ve done it, there isn’t really anywhere else to go. And when you’ve been plotting revenge for years, it’s been a long, long time since you’ve thought about what’s next. 

“What should I do with you?” Renfri’s had her share of travelling companions before, all bandits of course, but there’s something about the guard that’s just… different. And she isn’t really sure how to deal with it. 

The guard shrugged, her back to the wall, staring at anything by the view through the tower windows. “I don’t want to do anything.” After… the incident at the feast, the guard started to talk. Not much, but enough for Renfri to get an idea of she was.

“We could travel the world.” Renfri had been to more than a few cities, but she never really travelled. And the guard, well, she had only ever known a single town. “Or I could raise an army. Reclaim my crown?”

“Have fun.” 

“That’s the idea.” How does a monster have fun? It’s not really the type of questions that people tend to answer. “Or maybe I should find the others. All the sorcerers like Stregobor, maybe they should try to hide. If they can.” 

“Hm.” 

“You haven’t answered my question.” The guard shrugged again. “You can’t stay here forever.” 

“This is my home,” the guard answered. “I can always stay here.” 

***** 

The first time the guard smiled was the day the town ran out of supplies.

Renfri hadn’t planned on staying for long. In fact, she planned on staying at all. The plan was to come in, get her revenge, take what she can, burn the rest to the ground, and move on. It was a simple plan. A good plan. But here she still was, all her bandits having long since abandoned her. 

“Dance with me.” The guard was the only person left. That morning, as Renfri was studying the maps kept in the tower library, she came up to her and held out a hand. “There was supposed to be a wedding today, and… you know.” 

Renfri really didn’t, but she took the guard’s hand anyway. “Anyone interesting?”

“The butcher’s son and the blacksmith’s daughter,” the guard chuckled. “The most annoyingly charming couple in town. Course, rumour has it that the butcher and the blacksmith are fucking, so… you know.” 

That, Renfri did know. No one grows up a princess without developing an ear for rumours, for intrigue and blackmail. 

“And they’re supposed to be bringing in a cake from the city, with all the…” The guard’s voice wavered. “All—”

Renfri slowed the movement of the dance to a halt. “We’re out of food.” She kept her hands on the guard’s waist, kept her voice as light as she could. “We need to start mov—” 

The guard kissed her, desperate in its gentleness. “Has anyone ever told you that you’re beautiful?” 

Renfri froze. 

Not like that. 

***** 

“Just one more night.” 

The guard settled into the blankets next to Renfri, huddled together in the tower bedroom as the stars rose to cover the sky outside. 

“Just one more night.” 

It had been a couple of nights that the guard had been saying that, and a couple of nights that Renfri found herself giving in, even if she knew they shouldn’t. That they couldn’t. Sometimes, she thought, the scariest thing about being a monster is knowing that even monsters get scared. 

“Tomorrow’s the big market,” the guard mumbled sleepily. “Elena promised to show off her turnips. Bigger than a pig’s head, she says.” 

“Sounds like fun.” 

“And Mr. Tusk said he has a new ale recipe we just have to try.” 

“We will.” It was all Renfri could do to force herself to smile, as the guard’s eyes fluttered shut.

“Love you,” the guard mumbled out with her last breath of awareness, before slipping fully into sleep’s embrace. 

Renfri didn’t answer. She didn’t need to. When the scoured the tower for any crumbs of any possible remaining supplies, she had found a small bottle. A potion, the type you only ever take once. 

***** 

The sorcerer’s tower burned once more. 

Renfri didn’t bother to look back as she marched through the thin layer of fresh snow, more drifting down calmly from the sky. The problem with being a monster is that, in the end, the fear is all you have, and if you lose it, well, you might as well be nobody. 

Renfri wasn’t ready to be nobody. 

Not yet. 

Not with a whole world ahead of her.


End file.
